Meerut varsity adds Ramayana, Mahabharata in journalism course

MEERUT: Chaudhary Charan Singh University (CCSU), popularly referred to as Meerut University, has introduced a paper titled ‘Bhartiya Sanchar ke Praroop’ (Models of Indian Communication) in its MA in Journalism and Mass Communication (MA-JMC) programme to “acquaint students with traditional communication methods as portrayed in ancient Indian epics like the Ramayana and Mahabharata ,” officials announced on Saturday, reports Krishna Chaudhary.

Professor Prashant Kumar, director of the Tilak School of Journalism and Mass Communication (TSJMC) at CCSU, said the course is designed to “fuse India’s ancient intellectual heritage with contemporary journalism education.”

He cited Sanjay’s narration of the Kurukshetra war to the blind king Dhritarashtra through divya drishti (divine vision) as a “classical example of live reporting”. He added that students will also examine how “Hanuman served as a vital communication link between Lord Rama and Goddess Sita during her captivity.”

“We have been learning Western methods so far despite the wealth of research and work in our own country,” Kumar said. “Going forward, we will focus on our own traditions as no one understands our culture better than we do.”

He pointed out that just as the Bhagavad Gita is taught in several countries for management education, “ancient Indian communication practices, some of which are thousands of years old, remain relevant today and will continue to be so in the future.”